Automotive News

Toyota gets top-2 spots in Consumer Reports’ reliability

Toyota has again ranked at the top of the 2014 reliability rankings of Consumer Reports, the independent testing organization. The Lexus ES 300h Hybrid is the top-ranked vehicle, followed by the Toyota Prius. Consumer Reports uses surveys returned by their subscribers and compiles reliability histories on vehicles and predicts how new cars currently on sale will hold up. Lexus is Toyota’s luxury brand. The ES 300h is reliable and safe. The hybrid earned the highest ratings in each of the government’s crash evaluations, including overall driver safety, frontal crashes and overall side impacts. Here’s the list of the top-seven most reliable cars in 2014, according to Consumer Reports. 7. Volvo XC70 Sticker Price: $34,500 – $45,650 Invoice Price: $32,430-$42,911 Fuel

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Dario Franchitti retires after doctors’ crash concerns

Dario Franchitti, the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and four-time IndyCar titlist, retired November 14 upon his doctors’ recommendations in the aftermath of his crash about five weeks ago in Houston,Texas. Franchitti, 40, fractured his spine, broke his right ankle and suffered a concussion in the Oct. 6 IndyCar race. Franchitti’s car made contact with Takuma Sato’s vehicle on the last lap and sailed into a fence. Debris from the accident injured 13 fans in the grandstands and one IndyCar official. “One month removed from the crash and based upon the expert advice of the doctors who have treated and assessed my head and spinal injuries post-accident, it is their best medical opinion that I must stop racing,” Franchitti said, according

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NEW CAR PREVIEW: 2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric

Mercedes-Benz has waited a long time to enter the electric car business, but it will early next year with 2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class. It’s all-electric hatchback with a 24-kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery pack offering a driving range of up to 124 miles on a single charge. Mercedes reports the car will have an electric motor supplying 134-horsepower and 228 pound-feet of torque. The new car can reach a top speed of 93 miles per hour and accelerate from 0-60 mph in less than 10 seconds. Mercedes-Benz unveiled B-Class electric vehicle at the 2013 New York Auto Show in March. The new B-Class will feature active parking assist and a radar-based collision prevention system. The B-Class Electric Drive will be the smallest

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Ferrari LaFerrari: Fastest Ferrari and it’s a hybrid

Unveiled at the Geneva International Motor Show in March, the LaFerrari is a limited production hybrid sports car built by Ferrari. The LaFerrari is the first hybrid from Ferrari, providing the highest power output of any Ferrari while decreasing fuel consumption by 40 percent. Only 499 units will be built and each will cost more than $1.6 million. LaFerrari’s mid rear mounted V12 Internal Combustion Engine has a 6.3 liter engine capable of 789 horsepower. But it’s supplemented by a 161 horsepower KERS unit (called HY-KERS). It provides short bursts of extra power. The new Ferrari also has a seven-speed, dual-clutch transmission and is rear-wheel drive. Top speed is 220 mph and with 0-60 mph in just under three seconds.

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Volkswagen: Bugs, Beetles, Bliss

Like several friends, my first car was a Volkswagen. It was a family friend’s car and the 1962 VW Bug was pristine. I bought it for $500 in 1972 when I was age 17. The memories of learning about its simple engine and driving it everywhere are still vivid 40 years later. All these years later, I just drove a 2014 Volkswagen Beetle R-Line for a week. It’s still unmistakably a Volkswagen, but it’s also a completely different car. The new VW Beetle has five times the horsepower of my Bug from yesteryear. And the driving difference, from what I can remember from 40 years ago, is remarkable. Vintage and new Bugs and Beetles still share a wondrous trait: Both

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Bugatti Veyron as a police car? Sure, in Dubai

Chevrolet and Chrysler is understood. But a Bugatti and an Aston Martin as police cars? It can’t be true, can it? Turns out it is the United Arab Emirates, specifically Dubai. The Emirate of Dubai, including the modern City of Dubai, are wealthy places where excess is the norm — including cars. People in Dubai drive fast and the policemen of Dubai drive past or at least they hope to drive faster than the public considering the cars in their force. There’s a Ford Mustang GT and Camaro SS in the fleet. But both are pedestrian compared to the vehicles. The Dubai police force vehicles also include: a $110,000 BMW M6 Gran Coupe, $190,000 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, $200,000 Bentley Continental

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NEW CAR PREVIEW: 2015 Hyundai Genesis gets makeover

The 2015 Hyundai Genesis will feature a low vertical grille, higher quality cabin controls and a safer seatbelt system, the South Korean manufacturer has announced. Hyundai detailed its new Genesis is the result of a four-year project that cost nearly $500 million. The carmaker said the new Genesis will have the best chassis in its class, plus drivability that matches European luxury cars. Hyundai detailed it has tested new Genesis on the famed Nurburgring circuit in Germany. Hyundai calls its latest design “Fluidic Sculpture 2.0.” Updates from the current Fluidic Sculpture 1.0 include an edgier, flat-bottom hexagon in the Genesis — a feature on the Veloster hatchback and Santa Fe SUV. The current Genesis has a 333-horsepower V-6 or 429-hp

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Ford slammed in Consumer Reports’ reliability study

Ford has been rocked with unreliable scores, with five of the 10 least reliable cars in the United Sates manufactured by the iconic carmaker, according to Consumer Reports. The carmaker was represented on the dubious list by the Ford C-Max Hybrid,  C-Max (Plug-in Hybrid), Escape (1.6L Ecoboost), Explorer (V6, 4WD) and Taurus (Turbo). The annual survey is conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center. It considers the experiences of drivers of 1.1 million vehicles. Consumer Reports uses the survey data to compile reliability histories on vehicles. It then predicts the dependability of new models. Predicted reliability is usually based on the three most recent new model years if a model hasn’t redesigned in that time period. Models with an

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Tom Cruise set to play racing legend Carroll Shelby

Tom Cruise has played characters interested in speed, in one form or another, many times in his career. He’ll soon begin portraying a legend of auto speed and innovation, Carroll Shelby. According to a report on AOL Autos, Cruise and Joseph Kosinkski, the director of Oblivion, will team to make a movie from the book Go Like Hell. The book details the epic battle between Ford’s and Ferrari for dominance in the 1960s European racing scene. Shelby, the sole member of a rare automotive fraternity who rose to prominence as a driver, builder and owner, died earlier this year at age 89. Shelby won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Aston Martin in 1959 with co-driver Roy Salvadori. He

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NEW CAR REVIEW: 2014 Fiat 500L: Utilitarian, Italian flair

The new 2014 Fiat 500L sedan is roomy and has some Italian flair, but isn’t much fun to drive. The new also sedan doesn’t have much in common with the lively but smaller two-door 500 models. For instance, the $19,100-$24,195 500L four-door hatchback sedan is 27.7 inches longer and has approximately six inches more height and width than the two-door 500. Its grille looks as if pasted on to provide a family resemblance to other 500 models. The front-wheel-drive 500L isn’t as cute as the smaller 500. It has a short nose you can’t see from the driver’s seat and a raked windshield. A large glass area allow good vision. It’s no head-turner, but has a clean Italian design. Rivals

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NEW CAR VIDEO REVIEW: 2014 Fiat 500L

A lot of cars, even from different manufacturers, look the same. But in recent years, Nissan, Kia, Scion and MINI have all strayed from the usual conformity of car styles. And now the 2014 Fiat 500L has joined the non-conformists. Nissan has the Cube. Kia has the Soul. Scion has the xB. And even MINI has strayed from tradition in recent years with the Countryman, its compact wagon. The 2014 Fiat 500L is not as outrageous, but it’s a five-door compact hatchback wagon with a lot of character, innovation and a unique design. The Fiat 500L is more than two feet longer than its more well-known sibling. It’s equipped with a 1.6-liter, 160-horsepower turbo-charged four-cylinder engine and a six-speed automatic

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Toyota Camry, Avalon, Venza halted for airbag, steering woes

The Toyota Camry and Camry hybrid as well as the Avalon and Avalon hybrid and Venza will combine for 803,000 vehicles being recalled in the United States for faulty airbags or power steering problems. The Camry and Camry hybrid, Avalon and Avalon hybrid and Venza from the 2012 and 2013 model years are affected. According to Toyota, water from the air conditioning condenser can leak onto the air bag control module and cause a short circuit. That could illuminate the air bag warning light, disable the air bag or cause the air bags to deploy inadvertently. The power steering assist function could also become inoperable if the air bag control module is damaged, making the vehicles harder to steer. Two

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TheWeeklyDriver.com collaborates with eBay.com

As editor and publisher of theweeklydriver.com, I am pleased to announce my new affiliation with eBay.com. As a contributor to the site for about one year, my latest project is as a  contributing writer to a new program called Collections. The program, launching today (Oct. 22), features numerous automotive industry journalists each writing about some their favorite new and used vehicles and affiliated automotive products in 24 collections. My collections cover a diverse selection of cars and trucks, ranging from my long-time interest in Rambler to my respect for the enduring popularity of the Toyota Corolla. I’m particularly interested in vintage and unheralded cars, so my collections list has some unusual titles from the All-Ugly, All-Collectible Car Club to Improbable

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Ford Pinto? VW Thing? The All-Ugly Car Club

The Pontiac Aztek is often described as the ugliest car ever made. But who’s to argue the Volkswagen Thing isn’t equally as ugly? And then there’s the Ford Pinto. They’re all notoriously unattractive cars. And because of their status, they’re also collectors’ cars. What other cars are in the the All-Ugly Collectors’ Car Club? How about several AMC models, like the Gremlin or Matador, or nearly an vintage Citroen. And not every Ford Mustang is all that attractive. The All-Ugly Collectors’ Car Club is part of TheWeeklyDriver.com’s new Collection series on eBay.com It’s among 24 collections of different sub-sets of car and trunks  I’ve researched and commented. And they’re all for sale on eBay.com To read the text and view

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Green Car of the Year?: BMW, Toyota, Mazda, Audi, Honda vie

The Audi A6 TDI, BMW 328d, Honda Accord, Mazda3 and Toyota Corolla have been selected as finalists for the 2014 Green Car of the Year by the Green Car Journal. The winner will be announced at this year’s LA Auto Show beginning Nov. 19 with three media days. An increasing number of vehicle models are considered for the Green Car of the Year program each year, a reflection of the auto industry’s expanding efforts in offering new vehicles with higher efficiency and improved environmental impact. Green Car Journal has been honoring the most important “green” vehicles every year at the LA Auto Show, since its inaugural award announced at the show in 2005. Finalists are selected for their achievements in

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Top-10 cars in 2013 no one is buying

Competition in the auto industry is ever-intensifying. Or at least it seems that way. As a result, more vehicles have become better cars and fewer cars are outright bad. But how fast cars sell or don’t sell is a good indicator of what cars customers want and don’t want. New cars in 2013 have spent an average of 62 days at a dealership before being sold, according to the statistics of the car site, TruCar.com. The 10 slowest-selling cars so far in 2013 have all remained at a dealership for more than 100 days before selling. It doesn’t mean the slow-selling cars aren’t quality new cars. Seasonal sales factor into the equation and a brand with a new generation pending

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